Spanakopita (Spinach and Feta pie)

This is a fairly simple recipe, which I've varied a little. The most labor-intensive part is working with the phyllo dough, and I'll give you some options for that at the end of this post. It's definitely not something I make just to snack on at home, it's party/dinner guest food.

You need:

1 stick butter
1 lb thawed and drained frozen spinach
1/2 lb feta, crumbled (scant 2 cups)
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 an onion, chopped
Salt, to taste
10 (17- by 12-inch) phyllo sheets, thawed if frozen

Instructions:

• Mix together the spinach, chopped onion, nutmeg, feta, and salt
  

Now, here is where it becomes more complicated. You need to keep the phyllo sheets moist, but not wet, a very slightly damp towel helps, with a layer of plastic wrap under it.

Assembly option 1 (for finger food):

• Take 1 phyllo sheet and brush with melted butter
• Top with another phyllo sheet and brush with more butter
• Cut buttered phyllo stack crosswise into 6 (roughly 12- by 2 3/4-inch) strips
• Put a heaping teaspoon of filling near 1 corner of a strip on end nearest you, then fold corner of phyllo over to enclose filling and form a triangle
• Continue folding strip (like a flag), maintaining triangle shape. Put triangle, seam side down, on a large baking sheet and brush top with butter.
• Repeat until out of phyllo

Assembly option 2 (as a main dish):

• Take 1 phyllo sheet and brush with melted butter
• Repeat with another phyllo sheet until you have a stack of 10 or so sheets
• Place stack of buttered sheets and place in a lasagna dish
• Top with spinach mixture
• Make another stack of 10 buttered sheets and place on top, being sure to brush top with butter

Bake either method in 375 degree oven for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown, then cool. If you use the triangle method, you can freeze the uncooked triangles and bake later (without thawing first).

Tortilla Espanola

I first had this dish in Spanish class in High School. If I recall correctly, my Spanish Teacher was from Germany, but had lived or spent a fair amount of time in Spain, and she used to bring this simple, tasty dish in for us as a treat once a year or so. It seems to be a staple on tapas menus.

You need:

2 yellow onions, diced
6 large boiling potatoes, chopped in 1/3-inch dice
10 eggs
Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
Paprika and/or chopped parsley for garnish

To make it:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
  
• Saute yellow onions in olive oil and potatoes until vegetables are soft but not browned
  
• Let remove from heat, transfer to bowl, and let cool for 5 minutes
  
• Beat eggs lightly as if making scrambled eggs, then add them to cooled veggies
  
• Return this mixture to an oven-safe saute pan and cook until eggs are half cooked
  
• Level out top of eggs (by pressing potatoes and onions down with a spatula) and bake for 15 minutes
  

Slide onto a plate for serving, and sprinkle lightly with paprika and/or chopped parsely. You cut this and serve it in wedges like a pie. It can be served warm or room temperature and makes a great lunch or light dinner with a salad on the side.

Feta, Eggplant, and Olive Sauce (for pasta)

This recipe comes straight from While the Pasta Cooks. I rediscovered it last night, and it's an old favorite.

Ingredients:

1 lb. pasta (they say "any shape" but I also prefer fusilli or rotini or bowties in this, I wouldn't make it with any of the "long" pastas)
1 1/2 lbs. small firm eggplant, stemmed, peeled, and cut into thin 2-inch-long strips
1 tsp. salt
3 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 medium onion, chopped
Pinch of crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 tsp. dried oregano
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
12 imported black olives (Mislinis, Kalamata, or Nicoise), pitted and coarsely chopped
4 oz. feta cheese, crumbled

Bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add the pasta and stir a few times to ensure that the pasta does not stick to itself. Boil vigorously for the time recommended on the pasta package or until the pasta is tender.

While the pasta cooks, toss the eggplant with the kosher salt in a microwave-safe dish. Cover and microwave at full power for 2 minutes. Transfer to a clean kitchen towel and squeeze out the excess water.

Heat the oil in a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onion and red pepper flakes and cook until the onion has softened, about 2 minutes. Add the oregano and eggplant and cook until the eggplant has lightly browned, about 3 minutes. Stir in the garlic, basil, and olives.

Drain the pasta and toss it in a serving bowl with the sauce and feta cheese.

My notes: The key to actually getting all of this done "while the pasta cooks" is to make sure everything is chopped and measured before you start boiling the water. Also, I know I've recommended in other recipes that you don't need to pit the olives, but in this one, it's better if you do. This is also a fairly dry sauce.

Red Bean and Tomato Curry

This is mostly what my mother calls a "dump" recipe (as in you dump cans of stuff into a pan), but it's yummy.  I got it from Classic Home Cooking

I made a few small modifications

Ingredients:

2 tbsp. vegetable oil (They call for corn or sunflower oil, I sometimes use olive oil instead)

1 large onion, sliced 

5 garlic cloves, crushed

1-2 fresh green chilies, cored, seeded, and sliced (I used jalapenos, but you could use serranos, if you like pain)

1 inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped

1 tsp curry powder

1 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp ground coriander

pinch of cayenne

salt (to taste)

13 oz. can of chopped tomatoes

20 oz. can of red kidney beans (drained)

1 tbsp lemon juice

(They suggest fresh cilantro leaves to garnish.  I've never done this.  Instead, for a pop of green color, I add some frozen peas.)

The Plan:

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet, add the onion, garlic, chilies, and ginger, and cook, stirring occasionally, for a few minutes, until all the aromas are released and the onion is softened but not browned.
2. Add the curry powder, turmeric, ground coriander, cayenne pepper, and salt to taste, and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes.
3. Add the tomatoes with most of their juice and cook for about three minutes.  Add the beans and cook for 5 minutes longer (This is when I add the frozen peas.) or until the beans are warmed through and the sauce is thickened.  Add the lemon juice and serve hot, garnished with cilantro leaves (or not, really).

I also serve this over couscous, since making perfect rice like an Indian restaurant is beyond my grasp.  You can also substitute chickpeas for half of the kidney beans.

Black Bean Quesadillas with Pico

These are a quick, easy recipe I came up with to use up pantry ingredients and add some freshness.

For quesadillas, you'll need:

1 can of black beans with jalapenos added (or one can plain black beans, and a jar of pickled jalapenos)

1 package of shredded cheese, preferably a Mexican blend

1 tsp. or two of cumin 

Salt and pepper

1-2 tablespoons of olive oil

1 package small whole wheat tortillas (in this case, I don't recommend the freshly made ones, since they puff up a lot)

For the Pico, you'll need:

1-2 fresh tomatoes (in the off-season, I like the tomatoes on the vine)

1 red onion

1 bunch cilantro (you won't use all of it)

1 fresh lime or some bottled lime juice

Salt and pepper

The plan:

• Drain the beans and add them to a sauce pot
• If they don't contain jalapenos already, add the desired amount from your jar of pickled peppers
• Begin to heat the beans, then add cumin and salt and pepper to taste
• Cook over medium heat and let it cook down a little
• Set it aside, since this tends to thicken as it cools

Next:

• Chop a tomato or two up into half-inch bites and place in a bowl
• Chop half of the red onion into roughly the same size as the tomatoes, and add to the bowl.  If the onion is small, you can chop up some of the rest of the onion as you wish.
• Chop up cilantro to taste.  I would go for at least a tablespoon or two, but I know it's an acquired taste.  Rough chop is fine.  Add to the bowl as well.
• Add a gentle amount of salt and pepper, then add the juice of one lime and toss.
• Let it sit.  You can actually make this the day before.

Finishing up:

• Heat up the olive oil in a medium non-stick pan
• Add one tortilla, and sprinkle cheese on top.  I like a fair amount, but keep in mind that there will be cheese on the other side, too.
• Add a generous dollop of beans over the cheese and spread them out.
• More cheese on top of the beans, then add another tortilla.
• Keep an eye on the bottom tortilla, when it starts to get crispy and brown, use two spatulas to flip the whole thing over
• Once the second tortilla is browned on the bottom, slide the whole thing to a plate
• You should be able to make two-three servings.  
• Once done with the tortilla assembly and cooking, toss the pico again and taste it.  Adjust seasonings as needed.
• Put a generous scoop of pico de gallo on top of each quesadilla.  You can garnish with sour cream if you need additional "stuff" but frankly I think it's fine without.

Enjoy!